MLB All-Star Voting 2012: 5 Most Undeserving All-Stars If Voting Ended Today

Picking on MLB All-Star voting results is a popular topic among fans, reporters and bloggers. It's easy to dismiss the fan vote as a popular vote, just selecting the names they've heard of or are fans of, rather than taking a closer look at whose performance is truly the most deserving of starting honors.

This year, however, the fans have mostly gotten it right. Fans can see more action than ever with so many games on cable and packages like MLB.TV and MLB Extra Innings allowing them to watch players and teams previously out of their reach. All of the statistics to make an informed choice are just a click away on the Internet. 

With just over a week to go in stadium balloting and more than two weeks remaining in online voting, there's still time for the current results to change and ballot-stuffing campaigns to start up. Both will surely happen now that the second wave of balloting results has been released. Here are links to the AL and NL voting totals thus far. 

But a few players lead the vote at their respective positions that don't deserve an All-Star starting nod. Some might not warrant an All-Star bid at all. After looking over the latest voting results, here are five leading players who lead the voting at their positions but shouldn't start on July 10 in Kansas City. 

Nelson Cruz, Texas Rangers

Nelson Cruz ranking third in voting for AL outfielders is probably the most egregious All-Star balloting result at this point. While he's having a decent season, it's not of All-Star quality. Maybe everyone remembers his outstanding postseason and is carrying that over to the All-Star vote.

OK, but Cruz isn't one of the best eight to 10 outfielders in the AL this year. He ranks 20th among AL outfielders in OPS at .745, and his eight home runs are tied for the 14th-highest total. The only category in which Cruz ranks among the top 10 leaders is RBI with 36. 

Fortunately, this early result will eventually correct itself. Both the Blue Jays' Jose Bautista and Orioles' Adam Jones are close behind Cruz in voting. Either player is more deserving of the All-Star starting nod.

Matt Kemp, Los Angeles Dodgers

Yes, Kemp is arguably the best player in the NL when healthy, and he deserves consideration and the popular vote because of that. But he simply hasn't played enough this season to warrant the starting nod.

Kemp has already missed 26 games due to a hamstring injury and doesn't have enough plate appearances for his statistics to qualify among the league leaders. He's going to miss at least two more weeks worth of games too.

Several outfielders would be a suitable replacement. Kemp's Dodgers teammate Andre Ethier and the Giants' Melky Cabrera are fourth and fifth in the NL outfielder vote and either would be deserving. The Braves' Michael Bourn is another.

The two players who are truly getting screwed in All-Star voting are the Rockies' Carlos Gonzalez, who ranks 10th at the moment, and the Marlins' Giancarlo Stanton, who isn't even listed among the top 15. 

Troy Tulowitzki, Colorado Rockies

Troy Tulowitzki is the best shortstop in the NL. It's not a terrible error to have him leading the NL All-Star vote at shortstop.

But is he the best at his position this season? Tulowitzki struggled badly on both offense and defense to begin the year. An injured groin currently has him on the disabled list, costing him 11 games thus far. It looks like Tulowitzki might miss even more after he re-aggravated the groin in rehab assignment on Wednesday.

Rafael Furcal of the Cardinals is next in voting among NL shortstops and would be an excellent candidate to start, though he has slumped badly in recent weeks, dropping his batting average below .300 and OPS under .800. The Cubs' Starlin Castro is also deserving of starting status.

The guy who should really get the nod is Houston Astro Jed Lowrie. He leads NL shortstops in OPS at .881 and has 12 homers, 28 RBI and 24 walks through 53 games.

Prince Fielder, Detroit Tigers

Fielder is having a nice first season with the Tigers, and it certainly wouldn't be a crime to have him get the start at first base. He's third among AL first baseman in OPS, second in batting average and on-base percentage, and fourth in slugging. 

But Paul Konerko of the White Sox should be the starter. He leads the major leagues in batting average at .373, ranks third in on-base percentage, fourth in slugging and third in OPS. 

Konerko is second and approximately 3,000 votes behind Fielder among AL first baseman, so the balloting might eventually correct itself. Getting the start would also be a nice honor for a great career, one that might end after next season if Konerko decides to retire after his contract expires.

Buster Posey, San Francisco Giants

As with Tulowitzki and Fielder, Posey would not be a bad choice to start the All-Star game at his position. He's just not the best choice this year.

Posey's .811 OPS ranks fourth among NL catchers. So does his .291 batting average, .351 OBP and .459 slugging percentage. 

Carlos Ruiz is hitting like an MVP candidate for the Phillies with a .350 batting average and .963 OPS, and should be named the NL starter. Cardinals fans would surely disagree with that. And they wouldn't be wrong, as Yadier Molina is having an excellent season with an .897 OPS, eight homers and 33 RBI.

Even the Dodgers' A.J. Ellis and his .907 OPS would be a better choice this year. If only the majority of fans and All-Star voters knew who he was. Another worthy selection would have been the Brewers' Jonathan Lucroy, batting .345 with a .969 OPS. A broken hand skidded his season to a halt, however.

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